Hearts For Rent
by AlbeeDarling
Summary: AUYaoi.Based on RENT. The city is a Tempting playground of vice that only the strong can survive. But in this age of Friendship,Betrayl and Love can 8 jaded and lonely youths truly connect?
1. Season of Change

**A/N**: Hey there people! I'm taking a break from my summer camp KH2 fic (I'll update when spring break starts next week). And now I'm back with another KH2 fic! WOOT! I had this randomly great idea to mix two of my favorite things; Kingdom Hearts and RENT.

So this is basically an AU KH2 fic that is loosely based around RENT (the musical and movie). You'll see parallels between the KH2 character and the RENT character they represent. I bet you can guess who's who! But enough about that…on with the fic!

**Note:** This is an AU story and will not be featuring all of the characters. And that being said, the characters will definitely be a bit OOC.

**Note:** oh yeah, and this will have yaoi and Yuri in it (not a lot of yuri but a whole bunch of yaoi). Don't like? Don't read!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything! I'm broke! Don't sue! Don't sue!

Ch.1: Season of Change 

**-RIIIING!- **Roxas pressed his head further under the pillow as the annoying sound persisted. –**RIIING!- **Roxas grunted and peeked out from under his pillow to look at the small digital clock on his cluttered bedside table. '_8:43…in the morning?'_ he thought as he buried his head back under the pillow and exhaled with deep frustration into the mattress. '_why cant Sora just get the damn phone…uggh…it's too early…'_ the hapless blonde thought to himself as he reluctantly threw the pillow off of his head.

Roxas sat himself up abruptly and nearly fell off the side of his bed as he was blinded by the sunlight coming though the cracks in the blinds. "Ah…! Son of a bitch…" he grumbled as he rubbed his sensitive eyes and swung his legs over the bed and onto the hardwood floor. –**RIIING!- ** Roxas grumbled a few curses as he stumbled blurry eyed and barefooted into the front of the loft. "…the hell would call at an hour like this? Do normal people even get up at this hour? Just my luck…" the scowling blonde mumbled as he groped around on the kitchen counter for the phone.

He picked it up and held the receiver to his face "hello?" he asked grumpily into the phone. "Um…hey Roxas. You sound chipper this morning" came a pleasantly amused voice from the other line. Roxas' eyes sprang open at the familiar voice "Z-Zexion?" Roxas replied in a flustered tone. There was laughter on the other end and Roxas relaxed his body as the laughter seemed to affirm him suspicion. "Yeah, it's me. Well Roxas, I see you're still not a morning person eh?" the voice answered pleasantly.

Roxas allowed his mouth to quirk into a half smile as he hoisted himself up on the counter and sat there swinging his bare legs over the counter. "Shut up. But seriously, Zexion… how are you? We haven't heard from you in almost three weeks. How's ol' patchy and the store?" Roxas asked his old friend good naturedly as he reached across the counter and grabbed an apple from the bowl of fruit.

There was a pause on the other line and Roxas proceeded to take a bite of the red fruit just as Zexion's voice came back "It's over". Roxas choked on the piece of apple in his mouth and started to cough violently into the phone. "Roxas? Roxas are you ok? Hey…Roxas are you ok?" Zexion's worried voice came through the ear piece of the phone as Roxas hit his fist against his chest in an attempt to coax the apple piece out of his throat.

It was then that the door to the apartment opened "hey Rox! I'm back! I went down to the Greenhousecafe and Marly was just opening up so he slipped us some omelets and bacon! Score!" Sora rambled on cheerily as he closed the door with his foot while trying to balance the two paper bags and camera case in his hands. Roxas looked over towards the door and in one hard cough he managed to expel the mushy apple out of his throat. "Eww! That's so gross Roxas! Why can't you use a trash bin like a normal person" the brunette frowned as he slipped off his sneakers and hurried over to set the hot bags on the counter.

Roxas managed to flip Sora the bird as he re-gripped the phone "uhh…sorry Zexion." Roxas coughed lightly into the phone as Sora put down the bags and looked up at his cousin curiously. "Is that Zexion?" the brunette asked anxiously but Roxas merely held out a finger to silence the other man. "what do you mean? I thought you and that Xigbar guy were doing great! What happened? Is it financial problems? Are you ok?" Roxas asked as Zexion calmed down a bit from the scare Roxas had given him.

"Um…it's a long story. But the spark notes version is that I thought he was great but he wasn't and now I'm back in Twighlight Town and I was wondering if you guys may have a couch to spare?" Zexion's voice sounded hopeful. Roxas gave Sora a weird look and then sighed as he ran a hand through his unruly pillow hair. "Of course man! You're room is still just how you left it. You know you're always welcome here" Roxas smiled reassuringly although he knew Zexion couldn't see it through the phone.

"Thanks man. Hey…umm…tell Sora that I'm sorry I haven't called lately but…well I'll tell you guys later. Um…I should be there in a few …I'm not that far" Zexion said on the other line and Roxas nodded "ok. See you then" the blonde said before promptly hanging up the phone. "Wow…poor Zexy" Roxas sighed as he scratched his head sleepily. "So it was Zexy?" Sora asked impatiently and Roxas just nodded absently.

Sora suddenly grabbed Roxas' hands and nearly pulled him from the counter as he began jumping up and down excitedly "What! Zexion called? What did he say? How's the store? How that patch guy? Err…Xigbar or something right?" Sora asked as he shook his cousin anxiously. "Stop! Stop it you idiot! You're gonna make me fall" Roxas shouted back at him as he tried to push Sora away with his foot.

**RIIING! ** Sora stopped shaking Roxas as the phone suddenly began to ring "what now damn it?" Roxas groaned as he fully kicked Sora away, causing him to hit the back of the couch and flip over onto the cushions. Roxas picked up the phone "Zexion?" Roxas asked into the phone. "Umm…not really. Is Sora there?" a sweet feminine voice answered back. Roxas cocked an eyebrow at the surprisingly familiar voice on the phone. Sora crawled up from the couch and leaned over the back. He pouted at Roxas.

Roxas shrugged and held the phone out towards Sora "Zexion's not with Professor anymore and now he's moving back in with us." Roxas said pointedly and Sora gave him a surprised looking face as he leaned over the couch. "but I thought…" Sora started but he was cut off as Roxas tossed the cordless phone in Sora's direction. The brunette was able to catch the phone just before it collided with his forehead. "Oh…it's Kairi on the phone. I'm going to go get dressed…Zexion will be here soon" Roxas said sternly as he hopped off the counter and wandered back down the small hall to the bathroom.

Sora just blinked in helpless shock and looked down at the receiver in silent panic, "hello? Hello? Sora? Sora sweetie, are you there? Soooora! Are you ignoring me?" the voice on the other end called out as Sora held the phone in his hand as if it were a ticking bomb. '_Zexion's coming home? And Kairi's calling…oh this cant be good' _Sora thought as he tugged nervously on the collar of his shirt.

**ON THE STREET**

Zexion frowned slightly as he hung up the phone and stepped out of the musky smelling phone booth. He ran a hand through his silver/grey hair and took a deep breath full of good old city air. It tasted like greasy pizza and exhaust fumes. _'Man, I've missed this place'_ Zexion thought with a barely detectable smile as he readjusted the large black back pack he had on his shoulders.

Zexion gently fingered the slowly swelling bruise that was forming under his right eye. It still stung when he touched it but the pain wasn't that big of a deal to him. It definitely didn't hold a candle to the pain he felt in his side and his back. Zexion cringed slightly as a small rambunctious child ran into his side as the child chased after a renegade kitten. He was only a few blocks away from the loft apartment that he, Sora, and Roxas used to share. The three of them had met three years ago when Zexion had just graduated from college and was searching for a new apartment. His old roommate Riku had just moved out to be with his on again off again girlfriend and Zexion could not afford the rent by himself.

Zexion turned the corner into an alley way that looked less than inviting and smelled even worse. It wasn't the most pleasant scenic route but it was a short cut Zexion knew of that led him right to the street their apartment was on. Zexion stuffed his thin hands into the small pockets of his tight black jeans which he toped with a fitted dark blue tank top under a long-sleeved black button down shirt. He could still remember that day he ran into the then 18 years old Sora Steele at a nearby bus station.

Zexion remembered thinking that the boy was obviously new to the city by the way that he kept looking around with the most adorable and helpless look that he's ever seen. Zexion was never the type of guy to just go up and talk to people out of the blue. He hated that. It wasn't that Zexion was anti-social or anything but he just preferred to mind his own business and stay to himself most of the time.

"But luckily for me, Sora **was** that kind of person" Zexion chuckled lightly to himself as he walked leisurely down the alley. He made a quick hop over a sleeping hobo. Sleeping, drunk or dead? Zexion wasn't sure but he just kept walking anyway. It had actually been Sora who had gone up to the dark and standoffish looking Zexion and told him that he really liked his boots. Zexion had nearly fallen over with laughter when the younger boy had said that.

Of all the things Zexion may have imagined the young brunette may have said to him, that was definitely not it. It was so random and so out of the blue that the normally stoic journalism major couldn't help but laugh. '_And then Sora turned the most adorable shade of red! I thought he was going to cry'_ Zexion thought a he reached the end of the alley. Zexion was brought out of his musings by the sound of playful strumming on some sort of string instrument. Zexion found himself instantly intrigued by the music and it's light airy melody. It sounded familiar and strange at the same time. He looked up and from across the street he saw the source of the music.

On the other side of the street was a graceful and handsome looking young man with

blonde hair styled in a mullet/faux hawk like fashion that somehow seemed to suite him. He sat on the sidewalk in simple worn jeans and a white t-shirt as he played a large blue sitar. '_Hmm…that's odd I've never seen one in real life before'_ Zexion thought as he watched the blonde's nimble fingers glide across the strings on the body of the instrument.

The blonde musician looked up briefly from his playing and immediately caught Zexion's eye. Zexion felt his heart speed up slightly as he found himself caught in the act. But the musician simply smiled lightly at the at him winked before going back to his strumming. Zexion released a breath he never realized he'd been holding as the musician broke their eye contact '_well that was weird…'_ Zexion thought briefly before continuing to make his way down the street.

**IN THE APARTMENT**

Roxas had just stepped out of the bathroom after his shower and he was now wearing a pair of faded jeans and an old band t-shirt. He shivered a bit as his still moist and steamy skin made contact with the slightly cooler air from the hallway. "So what did Queen Kairi want this time?" Roxas asked mockingly as he entered the living/dining room area. Roxas was drying his still damp hair with a small towel as he came over to the front of the couch and saw Sora stretched out with his arm slung over his forehead woefully.

"Sora…" Roxas called out the other boy's name as he lifted his foot to nudge Sora in the side. Sora made a small groaning noise before reluctantly sitting up to give Roxas room to sit. "Uh-oh. What did she want this time?" the blonde asked as he tossed the towel to the side. Sora sighed "well…you know that benefit cabaret she organized for the Rec center?" Sora asked as he leaned his head back on the sofa. "yeah…the one that's being torn down next week right? Ok, well what does that have to do with you?" Roxas replied as Sora brought his feet up onto the sofa and sat hugging his knees.

"Well, the cabaret is in 2 days and Kairi can't get the lighting and stuff to work right. She said she called a technician friend of hers but he never called back so…" Sora trailed off as he chewed his lip pathetically. Roxas cocked an eyebrow at Sora "and let me guess. She asked you to come down their and _fix_ it for her, didn't she?" the blonde asked with a hint of amusement in his voice.

Sora whimpered and groaned "yeah…" he said reluctantly. Roxas began to laugh much to Sora's embarrassment. "Sh-shut up! What the hell is so funny?" Sora shouted back at his roommate with a tone that had meant to be angry but came off as a whiny. Roxas shook his head as his laughter died down to a mere smirk, "talk about a short leash…" Roxas sighed as he stood up and began to walk over to the kitchenette area. Sora made a small sound of protest as he quickly sat up on his knees and turned around to face Roxas' back as the blonde went towards the fridge.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sora pouted angrily. It really amazed Roxas how childish he could be despite the fact that he was almost 23 years old. The blonde bent down to peer into the refrigerator, seemingly ignoring his cousin. Roxas turned around again with a can of grape soda in his hand and shut the fridge door with his foot. "Roxas! What did you mean by that?" Sora demanded in a more agitated voice as he leaned forward and began trying to climb over the back of the couch.

Roxas opened the cold beverage and took a drink as he watched Sora struggle to balance himself over the couch and then finally fall off completely. "I meant exactly what I said," Roxas replied as he looked down at the sprawled out brunette "even after you break up Kairi's still got you on a short leash" Roxas said as he moved to lean against the wall. Sora managed to sit himself up and rubbed the red mark on his forehead that had formed from his impromptu meeting with the hardwood floor.

"That's not true! I told you already, it's been 4 months already and I'm over Kairi. We're just friends and it's perfectly normal for friends to ask each other for help" Sora replied a bit defensively as Roxas continued to drink his soda. "Yeah right. Ever since you broke up you've been moping around the house and feeling all lonely" Roxas rolled his eyes as he spoke.

"It's always like that with Kairi. Ever since you guys first started dating. She manipulates you, disappoints you, hurts your feelings by flirting with anything that moves and yet every time she pouts or bats her eyes you go running right back to her" Roxas spoke with an understated malice. "It's sickening the way you just let her drag you around by your heartstrings like some sad little puppy! Even though **she's **the one who dumped you!" Roxas was nearly yelling now as he squeezed the now empty aluminum can in his left hand.

Sora opened his mouth as if he was going to speak but he quickly clamped his lips shut and looked down at the floor. Roxas saw the defeated expression on his face and he immediately regretted his outburst. But he knew that it had been the truth and he knew that Sora knew that as well. Roxas set the partially crushed can on the counter and walked over to Sora. "Sora, you know I'm only saying this because I care about you and I hate to see you all torn up like this" Roxas said in a softer tone as he knelt down before the brunette and put a hand on his shoulder.

Sora sighed but didn't look up at him "I know. But it's just hard…I mean. Kairi was always someone really precious to me" Sora said regretfully. "We've known each other since we were in Jr. High school and she'd always been there for me when times were rough. Especially after…you know…the whole Riku thing" Sora's voice hesitated a but as he mentioned their old friend. Roxas felt his jaw tighten at the other man's name but he remained silent.

"So…I guess I'm just not really used to being alone…I mean we've been together so long it just…well it became so natural to be dating Kairi. And I've gotten so used to just leaning on her that…I dunno I guess it's selfish of me but…" Sora continued as he looked up at Roxas. "It felt so comfortable to have her with me. I mean I knew we'd never get married or anything but…I dunno…I feel kind of lost with out her here to nag me…or something" the brunette mumbled the last part as he ran a hand through his spiky brown hair.

Roxas gave his cousin a small pat on the back as he stood up and stretched. "I know…but, you have to let go Sora. It's better if you stop harping on the past and try to move on like Kairi has" Roxas sighed as he scratched his head. Sora nodded and began to stand up himself as Roxas made his way back to the hallway. Sora watched Roxas as he disappeared into his room and the brunette suddenly felt guilty for laying all his baggage on him. Sora sighed again and looked over towards the door "Hey Roxy, I'm gonna go take a walk…I'll be back later. Do you want anything?" Sora called out as he walked over to the door while grabbing his camera and it's case.

"Ok! But be careful out there. Knowing how spacey you are, you'd probably waltz right in front of a bus!" Roxas yelled back teasingly. "Shut up!" Sora yelled back as a smile fought to claim his lips. Sora opened the front door and shook his head at Roxas. "Bring me some ice cream!" Roxas called out just as Sora was closing the door. The brunette giggled and slammed the door in response. Sora took a deep breath before he began to descend the stairs of their apartment complex.

'_Roxas is right…it's time I moved on. And I think today is as good a day as any. I think good things are coming my way'_ the brunette thought cheerily as he skipped out through the main entrance and nearly crashed into a tall redheaded boy. "Oops! I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bump into you" Sora bowed towards the darkly dressed redhead in embarrassment. The tall redhead looked down at the cutely blushing man and smirked "no problem cutie, you can bump into me any time you like" the redhead said with a provocative wink of his heavily lined green eyes. Sora looked up at the pale handsome stranger and blushed.

"Um…yeah. Well I'm sorry again. You just moved here recently right? Well, I don't think we've met before but my name's Sora Steele. I live on the 2nd floor, 006" Sora said with a friendly smile as he extended his hand to the wild looking young man. The redhead smirked and took Sora's hand in his own cool pale one. "Yeah, I've seen you before. I live on the 3rd floor 010" he replied as he shook Sora's hand. "Pleased to meet you. I'm Axel Marquez" he replied with a sly grin.

A/N: Ok that's all for the first chapter. I know it wasn't much but…well it's really just a bit of an introduction to the story/character relationships. Please let me know what you think! Like it? Love it? Hate it? Want more? REVIEW! REVIEW!

-- Chizz


	2. Of Strangers and Friends

Hi I'm back! Thank you to the two people who reviewed! Thanks a lot! But really…I want more people to review. I feel like no one is reading this…let me know what you think!

Disclaimer: As soon as I own it I will let you know. Until then…don't ask because I don't own it!

**Ch.2: Of Strangers and Friends **

**(ZEXION) **

"Oh crap! I told Roxas I'd be there soon…I knew I shouldn't have stopped for coffee" Zexion cursed himself as he glanced at his wrist watch and saw that it was now 11:03 in the morning. It had begun to rain shortly after Zexion has left the street where the beautiful young musician played and he had decided to duck into a corner bookstore. Unfortunately, instead of asking for a bag or newspaper to use as a rain shield he had browsed the small store and started up a heated debate with one of the employees about Oscar Wilde.

The dark silver haired man rose from the small table he had situated himself in when he ordered his first coffee. Zexion looked out and saw that it was still raining but luckily not as heavily as before. With one last sip of his coffee Zexion began walking towards the door with his bag in hand. "Thanks, please come again! It was a pleasure speaking with you" the young woman who worked the counter called to him as he opened the door. Zexion gave her a brief nod before pulling his jacket up so that it covered his head and exiting the bookstore.

The streets were a bit more active now as people were rushing to and fro with all the upbeat buzz of city life that Zexion had missed. Men and women alike splashed through the puddles of rain that formed on the sidewalk and for as far as the eye could see there was an ocean of umbrellas of all colors and sizes. Zexion tried to maneuver as best he could through the throng of people without causing more injury to his already sore and battered torso.

Zexion felt strangely at ease in the midst of the mid morning chaos of downtown. Most people would become agitated at the noisy fast paced city atmosphere but not Zexion. He had lived in the city all his life; not this particular city but in one just like it. He enjoyed the feeling of solitude and anonymity that one could only find amidst a large crowd of people. As he stopped at a cross section Zexion could help but look back down the block at where he had first spotted the musician.

To Zexion's surprise he found that the blonde sitar player was no longer there. '_I guess he moved on to a different corner or something'_ Zexion thought with a small pang of disappointment. When Zexion turned back around the light had turned red and most of the other pedestrians had begun to cross already.

As he reached the other side Zexion quickly turned the corner onto the street that would lead him to his friends' apartment. Unfortunately as Zexion turned he ran head first into a large broad shouldered man in a mechanic's uniform. Zexion stumbled back against the brick wall of a convenience store as he tried to recover from the collision. "Oh…damn…I'm really sorry" Zexion said sincerely as he pushed himself away from the wall.

The broad shouldered man scowled darkly at Zexion before reaching out and grabbing him roughly by the shirt front and then tossing Zexion into the gutter. "Watch where you're going asshole!" the man grunted as he continued on his way, leaving Zexion sprawled out in the gutter as the cold rain continued to fall. Zexion winced as he sat up on his behind and tried to wipe away some of the mud and gravel from his now soaked shirt. "Fugly gorilla faced prick!" Zexion cursed as he brushed back some of his rain soaked hair.

"This day just keeps getting better and better" Zexion grumbled to himself sarcastically as he reached for his back pack. Zexion stopped his grumbling when he noticed a large shadow hanging over his head and he quickly looked up to see if perhaps the man had heard him and come back. But Zexion was both relieved and shocked to discover that it wasn't the same guy; it was the blonde haired street musician!

There standing over him with a large lavender colored umbrella and wearing a knee length black pea coat over his slim frame was the blonde sitar player. "Y-you?" Zexion sputtered a bit dumbly as the slightly taller blonde gave him a wide grin. "Hey, are you ok honey? I saw that asshole in the grease monkey suit knock you over here so I came to make sure you were alright" the blonde said in a playful and yet sincere tone as he held the umbrella out to cover Zexion.

Zexion blinked stupidly in response causing the blond to giggle. Zexion's cheeks heated furiously as he realized how dumb he must look. The dark silver haired man quickly gathered his bag and stood up to face the musician who still held his umbrella out over them. Zexion gave a small smile and bowed "thank you for being kind to me but I'm ok. It was just a little fall that's all" Zexion said pleasantly as he tried to bow to the other man. As soon as he did this a terrible pain shot through Zexion's side as he accidentally put pressure on his still bruised and cut abdomen.

Zexion flinched and griped his side causing the blond to reach out and gently grab one of his shoulders. "Are you ok? I think you fell harder than you think" the blonde replied with a slightly worried tone as he helped Zexion straighten up and then moved his hand from Zexion's shoulder to his chest. Zexion blushed at the stranger's bold touch but his blush was soon doused with another shot of pain from his side as the blond moved his hand lower and gently poked the shorter man's ribcage.

The blond frowned slightly before removing his hand and placing it under Zexion's chin, forcing him to look up into the musician's aquamarine eyes. "I remember you from early…down on the street corner when I was set up" the musician said with a small smile. "my name's Demyx. How about you?" he asked with a bright smile.

Zexion returned his grin "I'm Zexion…pleased to meet you" Zexy replied as Demyx gave him a small giggle before releasing his chin. Demyx looked over at the other side of the street and suddenly grinned wickedly as he grabbed Zexion's free arm. "Whoa!" Zexion yelped as the blond grabbed his arm and looked both ways down the street. "Come on Zexy, I'm taking you back to my place so we can clean you up a bit" Demyx said with a tone that suggested it was more a statement than a question. And before Zexion could respond he was being running top speed across the still busy street while being dragged along by the strange blond with the large instrument strapped over his shoulder.

* * *

**(KINGDOM STREET RECREATIONAL CENTER) **

"Stop here please" the young blonde woman told the balding taxi driver as he they pulled up along side the curb in front of a medium sized building which looked as if it had seen better days. The cab pulled to a stop and the middle aged cabbie looked back at the two pretty young women in his back seat through the rear view mirror.

"How much do we owe you?" the one with shoulder length auburn hair asked the man with a small grin. The older man raised an eyebrow as he examined the auburn haired woman's praise worthy physique. Despite the temperature outside being around 47 degrees, the woman had on a short red and black pleated skirt and a tight off the shoulder black sweater that was partially covered by her waist length denim jacket and long cream colored scarf.

But she didn't seem to notice his probing eyes as she was now busily fixing a few stray pieces of hair behind her ear and checking the progress in a small compact mirror. It was odd, (to say the least) to think that these two women were together. The cabbie didn't really think they looked much like the type of person to hang out with the other; they were so different.

While the auburn haired woman had seemed more extroverted and free spirited in her dress and personality, the blond seemed to be the exact opposite. She hadn't spoken much or smiled much for that matter during the whole ride and unlike her friend she was more appropriately dressed for the weather. She wore long boot cut chocolate colored trousers under her knee length cream colored pea coat and held a sleek black leather handbag in her lap.

"Are you going to answer her or just check out her rack all day?" the blond asked in a stiff tone as she caught the cabby's wandering eyes in the mirror. The cabbie jerked upright in his seat and withdrew his eyes from the mirror as the auburn haired one finally joined the conversation. "He was just looking…no harm in that. Besides Namine, you know my heart is already taken" she said sweetly as she made a show of leaning over and giving the blond a soft lingering kiss on her pale pink lips. The man felt himself flush in embarrassment and decided to just ignore what had happened "um…$17.53" he replied gruffly as he turned his meter off.

The auburn haired woman reached into her shirt front and pulled out a crinkled $20 bill and handed to the slack jawed cabbie as the blond opened her door and quickly got out. "Keep the change. And thanks" she said as she exited the cab as well and went over to link arms with the blond. "snotty queer bitch…" the cabbie grumbled bitterly as he drove off, leaving the two women in front of the building.

"Oh crap it's almost 3-o-clock!" the auburn haired woman cursed as she looked down at her Mickey Mouse wrist watch and saw the time. The blond; Namine, looked up at her in concern "what's wrong?" she asked. The other woman just gave her a cute little pout "baby, I know you're going to be pissed but I promised Selphie that I'd go meet her for coffee and go over the last minute program details" she said guiltily.

As expected Namine looked less than pleased "but we have to wait for that guy you called to come and try to figure out the lighting and sound stuff" Namine said sensibly. But her girlfriend simply bit her lip and attempted to give the saddest puppy eyes known to man and Namine could almost feel the oncoming headache. "Kairi, you can't leave me alone with this! I don't even know the guy…I mean he is **your** ex" Namine pleaded in frustration.

"Sweetie…" Kairi cooed as she wrapped her arms around the blond and held her close to her body and nuzzling her neck. Namine felt her cheeks heat up as the other woman held her close; she knew she was fighting a losing battle. "Damn it…" Namine cursed in exacerbation and Kairi smiled happily before planting a hard playful kiss on Namine's cheek before puling away from her grinning. "Thanks babe. I knew you'd understand!" Kairi said with a wink before turning away and jogging down the street to the nearby bus stop "I wont be long! And tell Sora that I really appreciate this! Looove you!" Kairi waved back to the lone blond as she disappeared behind the corner.

Namine gave a brief wave back before turning to look up grimly at the old building of the rec center. She groaned unhappily as she looked over the dilapidated exterior "Now what…?" she murmured weakly to no one in particular as she thought with dread upon the afternoon that awaited her.

* * *

**(SORA) **

The bell on the door jingled as Sora pushed it open and rushed inside the café. The brunette looked cold and quite wet as he stood at the threshold of the building clutching his slightly wet camera case to his chest. "Hey Sora! What are you doing back so soon?" came a loud animated voice from behind the main counter. Sora wiped his shoes off on the rug and looked up sheepishly at the pink haired man who had addressed him before. "Yeah well…I wanted to go out to the park and photograph a bit but it looks like the weather had other plans." Sora replied with a heavy sigh.

The older looking man with the layered pink hair gave the brunette a sympathetic smile as he opened the cash register in front of him and put the money he had been holding inside of one of the slots. "Well that's ok. So how was the food? I hope it was enough" the man asked Sora as he came up to one of the bar stools lined up at the counter attached to the register desk.

Sora made a small scowl and lowered his head sheepishly "oh man…I'm sorry Marluxia. In all the excitement this morning I never got around to eating it! I hope Roxas got to eat his though…" Sora groaned guiltily and Marluxia simply shook his head and laughed at the younger man. "No worries. How about an ice cream Sunday?" Marluxia offered as he made his way down to Sora's end of the counter/bar. Sora gave him a curious glance and the Marluxia rolled his eyes as he picked at a piece of lint on his dark brown turtle neck sweater.

"It's on the house" Marluxia said with a wink and Sora smiled gratefully and nodded. "What's on the house? Marly, please tell me you aren't giving out more free food" came a slightly harsher toned voice from the kitchen entrance. Sora and Marluxia looked up to see a tall older looking blond man with a small goatee and mustache and a gold earring in his ear. Marluxia smirked playfully at the man as he made his way behind the bar and over to Marluxia with a scowl. "Oh shut up Luxord. It's only ice cream…and besides Sora hasn't eaten all day and I couldn't bare to let a cute young man go hungry" Marluxia rolled his eyes as the blond man wrapped his arms around Marluxia's waist and hugged him from behind.

"But you can't just keep giving out handouts. This is not a soup kitchen. I'm trying to run a business here" Luxord chided as he nuzzled Marluxia's nape. The pink haired man gave a small reluctant smirk as his lover tickled his neck with the prickly hair of his goatee. "Oh please, the only thing you're trying to do is get laid and trust me…you aren't succeeding" Marluxia said teasingly as he pulled out of the other man's embrace. Luxord scowled again "fine. Whatever…but no cherries. Those are only for paying customers" Luxord gave Sora an irritated look before heading back into the kitchen area.

Sora couldn't help but smile at the two. They were always like that with each other. Ever since Sora had started frequenting the café 2 years ago he had remembered thinking that the two men reminded him of an old married couple. Well, Sora supposed that was pretty accurate. The two men had been lovers for nearly 15 years now and had been running the fairly popular little bar/restaurant for about 8 years now. And strangely despite the fact that Marluxia was 6 years younger than his partner he seemed to be the more authoritative one.

In any case Sora enjoyed coming to the Greenhouse Café. He always felt a sort of 'homey' vibe there that reminded him of how things were when he was still living with his family. It was a small place and most of the regulars knew each other by name. And it seemed that someone always had a friendly smile or a small joke to share that seemed to add to the comfortable atmosphere. It held so many memories for Sora as well.

In fact it was at this very café that he and Kairi had first started dating once she moved out to the city to pursue her dancing career.

She had proposed the idea while they sat over at a small table near the front of the café and shared a plate of fries. Sora suddenly felt his mood fall at the thought of Kairi. '_Oh crap! Why cant I just forget about it…uggh! I'm so bad at this'_ Sora thought rather sulkily as he slumped forward on his stool. Sora tried to concentrate on the cold hard surface of the bar against his forehead as the bell attached to the door jingled again.

"Well Howdy there!" Sora heard Marluxia call out with a faux southern belle accent as he sat down a glass bowl in front of Sora's head. Sora glanced up and saw the large bowl of vanilla ice cream with fudge sauce and whipped cream. "Welcome to The Greenhouse! And your hair is gorgeous by the way" Marluxia added in a playfully tone as Sora heard footsteps behind him. "…uhh…thank you. " came a bemused and familiar voice from behind Sora.

The brunette nearly fell off his stool as he jerked himself upright from the table and spun around to meet the owner of the voice that sounded so heartbreakingly familiar. "Ri-Riku!" Sora exclaimed as he laid his eyes upon the taller man with long silver hair. At first the silver haired man looked shocked and Sora stared wide eyed at the smooth chiseled face that had haunted his dreams for years. A face that Sora definitely could have done without seeing on this particularly troubling day in his life.

Sora dropped his gaze and felt his cheeks heat with embarrassment at his outburst. "Uh…" Sora opened his mouth to try and apologize or make an excuse or something. Anything to stop the uncomfortable silence. But before he could form the words "Sora…wow. It's great to see you…eh…it's been a long time" Riku said with an awkward but genuine smile.

Sora looked up at Riku and felt a slight sickness in his stomach as he heard those words. Sora gave a weak smile in return and nodded "Yeah…2 years actually" Sora felt the words fall from his lips with a bit more emotion than he had intended. Riku's smile fell a bit at Sora's tone. It was true, it had been a little more than 2 years since their last meeting. Although to Riku it had felt like much longer.

"Um…yeah. That was around Christmas time, right?" Riku said good naturedly as he once again held up an air of cool charm. Riku gave Sora a small "cordial" smile as he sat himself on a stool beside the other man. _'so this is what it's come to? Making pointless small talk?'_ Sora thought with a slight scowl.

"Something like that…" Sora said stiffly as he turned back around to face the bar. Sora looked up at Marluxia who was diligently wiping down a glass champagne glass and trying to look like he wasn't eavesdropping. Marluxia slowed his scrubbing hand a bit at the look in the brunette's eyes. His heart went out to the little guy, it really did. It was so obvious that the younger man was using every ounce of strength he had to try and stop the tears that threatened to come.

The pain he saw in those startling blue eyes gave him the strangest urge to scratch out the silver haired man's eyes with a rusty spoon. "Marly! Hey Marly…get back here a minute…I need your help with something" Luxord hollered from the back kitchen area. Marluxia scowled deeply at the voice '_damn it! And just when this was getting good…'_ Marluxia thought bitterly before begrudgingly leaving the two men and going to see what Luxord wanted.

Riku was a bit relieved that Marluxia was gone. Although he never showed it, Riku was becoming very uncomfortable with the intense and slightly menacing way the pink haired man was looking at him. Truth be told, Riku already felt bad enough as it was without having a third party's perspective. He didn't need to look at Sora's face to tell that the younger man was obviously upset. And just knowing that he was hurting, and that Riku himself was the cause, was enough to make Riku hate himself even more. "So…How have you been?" Riku asked in a low voice that was tinged with some emotion that Sora could only imagine was akin to worry or possibly even guilt.

Sora tightened his jaw as he heard Riku's words. In fact if it weren't for the fact that Sora felt like he wanted to cry, scream, runaway, and tear at his own hair all at the same time he may have laughed. It really was funny though. Perhaps not in a "ha-ha" amusing way but in an "a-ha" ironic way. Sora couldn't believe Riku was actually asking him about his state of well being, couldn't he tell? Didn't he know that Sora was miserable? Just as miserable as that night 2 years ago when he had said goodbye to the brunette for the last time.

"**I** haven't changed at all. I'm still the same as I was the last time you saw me. Or can you even remember?" Sora said with a callous and slightly pained voice. Riku flinched involuntarily at his tone. Despite the annoyance that was meant to carry the tone Riku could detect the small crack in Sora's voice as the boy tried to contain his true feelings. Riku lifted a hand to rest on Sora's tense shoulder "Look, Sora I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you upset. I just wanted to have a conversation with you" Riku said patiently as he tried to turn the man to face him.

Sora jerked his shoulder away from Riku and stood up abruptly from the stool. "It's fine. Really…I'm good. Well it was nice seeing you again Riku. I wish you good luck" Sora said with a less than convincing smile as he held his hand out for Riku to shake. Riku looked up at Sora with the most pitiful expression Sora had ever seen on his old friend. Sora almost felt bad for the guy as he looked up at him; almost. Riku sighed and took Sora's hand in his for a firm but timid shake.

"Well, see you around" Sora nodded as he began trying to muster up some of his usual cheeriness. And before Riku could respond in kind Sora had already pushed through the jingling café doors and was walking down the street. There were so many things he wanted to say to him, so many feelings he wanted to convey, so much he wanted to show him. But he couldn't, he just couldn't.

Riku groaned in frustration and turned his body back around to the bar and slammed his fist on the counter "damn it…" Riku cursed under his breath as he tightened his face in deep frustration. "Calm down honey. Don't bust a blood vessel…it couldn't have been that bad" Marluxia said nonchalantly as he sauntered back over to the bar and went to retrieve Sora's half melted and uneaten ice cream.

Riku looked up at the older man and frowned before running a hand roughly through his long platinum hair. "I wish that was true…" Riku chuckled bitterly as he rested his elbows on the bar. "What did you do?" the café owner asked as Riku sat there resting his chin on his conjoined hands pensively. Riku blew out his cheeks and closed his eyes meditatively "We've been friends since we were kids, we grew up together…and ever since I can remember he's been by my side" Riku said a bit reflectively.

Marluxia gave him a strange slightly peevish look as he realized the other man was ignoring his initial question, but he decided to remain quite. "We were always so close, you know? When I was younger I couldn't even imagine us not being together. Even now I find it strange that we aren't close anymore. I guess I never considered how growing up would change us both" Riku said with a small bitter sweet smile as he opened his eyes again. "But things change, and so do people. It's one of those annoying but unavoidable facts of life I guess" Riku shrugged weakly as he straightened himself up on his seat.

Marluxia gave him a quizzical look but nodded "yeah, that is true" the pink haired man said nonchalantly as he watched Riku stand up and straighten out his coat before turning to leave. "But you know…" Marluxia said in a more serious tone which caused Riku to stop in his tracks still facing the door. "from the way you talk about him and the way he was acting earlier…I don't think you two have changed as much as you think you have" Marluxia continued as he picked up the glass ice cream bowl and began wiping away the ring of moisture left on the bar.

Riku gave a short sigh as a small smirk tugged at his lips "who knows…well, have a nice day" Riku said cordially as he turned to give Marluxia a nod. "You too! And please feel free to drop by anytime…" Marluxia responded in kind with a small wink. "And next time buy something! This is a café not a support group meeting! Sheesh!" Luxord shouted from the back office as he heard Riku open the jingling front doors. Riku just nodded and left as Marluxia rolled his eyes at his partner's comment.

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A/N: Ok that's the 2nd chapter. I think I'm going to keep all the chapters about this short…that way I can update faster. Unless people don't like the short chapters and want the long detailed ones that I do for my other fan fictions (which by the way don't get updated regularly…oops). And please REVIEW! Love/Life, Chizz 


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